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Carlos A. Guzmán's research team applies knowledge about the human immune system and its challengers to develop innovative vaccination strategies.

Among all the hospital germs, Gram-negative bacteria are particularly difficult to treat: Many antibiotics fail due to the double-cell membrane. But cystobactamides are providing hope for a remedy – substances from the extensive collection of bacteria held by the HZI. These bacteria are going to be further developed into drugs in a partnership with the pharmaceutical company Evotec.

Herpesviruses use sneaky tricks to permanently establish themselves in our cells and to spread efficiently in the population.

Scientists in Saarbrücken are on a mission to discover natural products from soil bacteria in order to develop these into new medicines for the treatment of infectious diseases. They are asking the public to join their efforts and become part of an ongoing citizen science project launched recently to improve access to regional microbial biodiversity.

More and more resistant pathogens are spreading that cannot be harmed by traditional antibiotics. They are a great danger to the public health systems throughout the world. Without a major change in medical research and development, diseases that can be treated today may become incurable in just a few years. A small wound on a finger may suddenly turn life-threatening, since more and more bacteria become resistant to common antibiotics. The development of resistance is a natural effect of evolution. Resistance arises during the use of antibiotics as some bacteria that are immune to the medication due to genetic variance survive the treatment and then continue to proliferate. Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) considers antibiotic resistances to be one of the “major threats to global health and food safety”. They cause longer stays in hospital and therefore increasing costs of therapy and higher mortality. The spreading of resistances can be explained by a number of reasons, for example overly eager administration of antibiotics in the treatment of the symptoms of common colds, the use of antibiotics for insufficient periods of time or the improper use in animal husbandry. But one fact is clear: Solutions must be found rapidly by innovative research.

In autumn 2017, Nigeria suspected an outbreak of human monkey pox. Immediately, epidemiologists adapted their online disease surveillance system and travelled to Nigeria to support the locals. The 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa revealed an urgent need of efficient disease surveillance systems, because it became evident that the outcome of an epidemic also depends on how fast disease control measures are implemented. HZI scientists from the Department of Epidemiology, led by Gérard Krause, teamed up with Nigerian scientists and developed a mobile-based application, which allows real-time data collection and application of disease control measures called Surveillance, Outbreak Response Management and Analysis System (SORMAS).